Counsel General visits Ireland on fact-finding mission

Today, the Counsel General, Jeremy Miles AM is in Dublin to learn more about the Irish Government’s efforts to make Irish legislation more accessible and to discuss the legal implications of Brexit.

Thursday 31 May 2018

The Counsel General will visit the Law Reform Commission and will also meet the Attorney General for Ireland, Séamus Woulfe, the British Ambassador for Ireland, Robin Barnett and the new Chief Parliamentary Counsel, June Reardon.

Consolidation, codification and simplification of legislation will feature on the agenda when Jeremy Miles meets Mr Justice John Quirke SC, President of the Law Reform Commission. This has been a focus for the Commission since 2014 and the Counsel General will discuss lessons learnt to inform Wales’ Draft Legislation Bill, currently out for public consultation, and wider efforts to make Welsh law more accessible.

Speaking ahead of the visit the Counsel General said:

“The complexity of the law that applies to Wales is a big problem and steps need to be taken to simplify it and make it more accessible to everyone. It is vital that citizens understand their rights and responsibilities under the law; they know what the law means and who is responsible for what. This is a question of social justice.

“The Draft Legislation (Wales) Bill is currently out for public consultation, so the visit provides a useful opportunity to learn from the work that the Law Reform Commission has already done in this area.”

Later in the day Brexit will be on the agenda in talks with the Attorney General, Séamus Woulfe SC, as withdrawal from the EU will throw up complex legal problems.

Brexit will also feature tomorrow (1 June) when finding common solutions to the legal implications of EU withdrawal will be discussed at a meeting of law officers in Belfast. The Counsel General will join the Scottish Lord Advocate, James Wolffe QC, the Attorney General for Northern Ireland, John Larkin QC, and the law officers for Jersey and Gibraltar.